The Night Is Young
by Sasha Erin Alexain
Summary: AU. Post-Halo 3. The war is done. Kat and Six survived the events of Reach, and Earth. They fought alongside the Master Chief, they watched their comrades fall around them. The Covenant are destroyed. But now they're settling into a civilian life as best they can. Well, as well as super-soldiers can, anyway. F/F parings.
1. Sleepless

**Hello everyone. Long time, no see.**

**We'll get straight to it.**

**By the next chapter this will be renamed. Should be "The Night Is Young."**

* * *

Thoughts rushed through her, she'd been through this before:

Reach; the explosions, the fighting, the countless dead. Her team slowly dying one by one.

She would of died too, it not for Kat. Kat had been shot in the head, why was she still here? Alive?

Oh, that's why. Malfunctioning equipment or something, she couldn't really hear Kat, she was bleeding out. Those Elites had shot her up good, and her wounds were pretty bad. Kat was still talking to her. Yes, something about equipment making her appear to be dead, that and being unconscious.

Cold, and hard. Rock? She'd been placed against a rock. Ah, a DMR; thanks Kat. What was going on?

"Six, stay awake, I'm going to see if I can get that Pelican up and running, we need to get off Reach before it's glassed."

Wait, what? Kat was rushing off, and again, she's back, shooting.

Ouch. That's plasma hitting her. She fires back, and it kills her attacker. Even out of it, she knows she's better than them.

They're all dead, she's picked up now, Kat's carrying her.

"Do you know any Glassing-proof bunkers, Six? Neither do I!" Kat shouted to her while they went.

She sounded hysteric, like she knew they were going to die.

Were they going to die?

She didn't want to die.

Again, she's placed down. Roughly though, like she's fallen, she can feel the ground beneath her, through the armour, like she's not wearing it. But that's because she hasn't got her helmet now. She lost it, had to take it off. Cracks everywhere.

Wait, she fell. Why'd she fall?

Kat's on the ground, blood.

She was shot, still alive, leg's bleeding.

Six can't see very well now, Kat's pulling her towards her. Attackers on all sides, they're firing still into the masses.

They feel it's the end. Reach is gone, They're injured. Covenant everywhere, surrounding them.

Wait.

Wait, no.

They're falling, falling like flowers in the wind. The bird in the sky takes them down.

Kat's smiling. Why?

"The cavalry's arrived, Six!"

Rescue?

She can't tell, she's blacking out.

"Stay with me, Six." Kat slaps her gently.

Bitch. She smiles regardless.

Picked up again.

They're flying, she can feel it. They're in a ship, they must be.

She can see a lady in a white lab-coat out the corner of her eye. Blond hair with grey streaks. Dr Halsey?

Six looks to Kat. The woman that rescued her. She looks into that visor, knowing she's looking into her eyes.

"Thank-you Kat."

And like a candle, she winks out.

* * *

It's late. The time is approximately 2:49am. And Six jolts upright from where she sleeps, sweat running down her body. Her nerves are on fire, her head pounds. She can't sleep properly. Instincts take over, she grabs the pistol at her bedside. But she stops herself, there are no more of her enemies to kill. They're just memories now. She almost doesn't want to believe it.

Gently, she places the pistol in the open drawer of the bedside table, closing it without a second thought.

Swinging her legs around off the bed, her soft feet touch the cold wooden flooring, It sends a small shiver up her spine. She shrugs it off and advances to the bathroom, sharply closing her eyes as the light automatically turns on. It's dim, but enough to hurt her eyes.

She runs the cold tap of the sink, and splashes the cold water on her face as it runs. The shock wakes her up a bit more. It soothes her burning head.

Six glances into the sink-cabinet mirror, she's still her. Sometimes she can't be sure if it wasn't all a dream. She knows better than to think it; she knows the Covenant-Human war was real, she just honestly wished it wasn't.

She's still her.

Her eyes glance back at_ her. _The slanted, almond, green hazel eyes that were quite open. The small nose that was buttoned. Curved lips that were slightly bigger. Pronounced cheekbones that gave her face depth. And her light-orange-yellow skin, contrasting with the ear length scruffy black hair.

Everything screamed her Asian self, and yet also said she was mixed ethnicity. And she'd always be proud of that English part of her; her dad was a nice fellow. Not that she knew him, of course. Only by what she'd read on Halsey's files of herself.

She was so lost in her thoughts, she didn't notice the person in the mirror until they had their hands around her waist. But the person didn't attack her, and she didn't think to attack the person.

A gentle kiss was placed on her cheek.

"Having trouble sleeping again, Faith?" Kat mumbled with a content smile. She was tired as well.

"Mmhm." Was all Kat got as a response.

"You were tossing and turning again." Kat noted, "And talking."

"That tends to happen."

"You're not taking your anti-depressants are you?"

"No." It came across as defiant, almost cold. "They change me, slow me down. I don't like them."

"Neither do I, but we both need them regardless."

"Kat, I'd rather try to deal with the problem than bury it."

"So would I. But talking to shrinks hasn't helped us a bit."

"I know. But I'd rather suffer the night-terrors than being out of my head half the time."

"I get what you mean, these new drugs pack a hell of a punch."

"Hmm."

"Would you take one more? For me? I'd like to just sleep for the next few hours."

"..."

"Six?"

That name always got her attention. Kat knew how to push her buttons.

"Hm, do I have to?" Faith groaned.

"No... but, please?"

"...Alright."

Kat smiled very tenderly and twisted Six around, their lips met with a small amount of grace. The embrace holds for a few minutes, they enjoyment of each others company. And then they broke apart very gently. Faiths head craned around, and her body followed, opening the cabinet to take out a small pink bottle holding dozens of tiny white tablets. She grudgingly unscrewed the cap and popped one out onto her palm. And tossed it down her throat. She didn't like their taste. She didn't like what they did to her.

"C'mon, let's go back to bed." Kat suggested.

"Sure."

* * *

**A/N: Y'all confused? ****So am I!**

**But not really.**

**So, for all you new readers joining us; sit back and listen. For all you readers that followed previous; listen anways!**

**I got bored of the story. Kat and Six survived Reach and landed on Halo. Now I thought I could go ahead and add new spice to it. But then my mind told me, "No, you'd just be writing out Halo, but with two new additions." And that was pretty much the plot of it.**

**So I played around with ideas as to how I could keep the story fresh, and got nothing, and I decided I would reboot it. This story has a lot of followers and favourites, so people like it, and rather than delete it and say, "Lol, no more story." I decided to give it a new plot. So, new title, new summary, new story. Reboot!**

**I understand people followed it for it's previous plot. But I hope the new one lives up to what your expectations may be. To be fair, I believe the majority of people followed this due to the fact they thought it'd be a slashfic between Kat and Six.**

**I am quite pleased to know I was the first person to do a Kat/Six Halo pairing on the site. (No, seriously, it was brought to my attention by a few readers and myself while browsing the queues.) So I figure that may be as to why it got a lot of faves.**

**Regardless, this is a reboot of this story, and it will have regular updates as and when.**

**Give me your thoughts, people.**

**Until next time.**

**~Jessi**


	2. Awakening

Again, she woke up abruptly.

Although this time, there were no repercussions. No night-terrors.

That was a benefit of anti-depressants, but they still made her feel sluggish and shit.

With a sigh, she got up and dressed; a small tight top and some jeans, it was all that was needed. Pacing over to the window of the room she and Kat shared, her hand dragged open the curtain covering it. Her eyes squinted for a few seconds, but they quickly adjusted and she gazed out into the city-scape their small home presented.

This was New Union; a supercity built in Europe right after the war. The year was 2554. The UNSC having massed funds, helped in building, so the city was top-notch. Of course it has been tailored to suit the now. It was very urban, but flashy. Bright lights and colours pulsed everywhere; neon greens, pinks, and purples, a lot of blue streaked on signs and buildings. Bullet trains zipped around at high speeds, people going nowhere and everywhere. The supercity was bustling with activity day and night, with practically all the time in the world. Things simply flowed. Things simply _were._

Six loved it. Her and Kat were new to the city, and they had to adjust, but Six loved everything about it, so far.

Of course, people liked to adhere to their own times, so there were plenty of people down in the streets that were happily going about their business thinking the night had only just begun. Six didn't see how; it was 5 in the morning, she noted after glancing at the digital clock on the wall. Her eyes moved to the prone figure on the bed whose chest was slowly rising and falling, blissfully asleep.

Six's lips spread into a content smile and she got onto the bed and laid next to her lover. Her face was a few inches from Kats. Noticing that Kat was resting her head on her bionic arm as if it were a pillow. That really couldn't of been comfortable, but she supposed Kat was used to it.

Her thoughts ran back to Reach, upon first seeing Kat. She'd instantly fell in love with her. Six had always known her sexuality, really. She'd learned of it officially when she was being trained at Camp Currahee on Onyx. She had seen a small, pale girl with scruffy black hair, and a mischievous smile. Lucy. Six had instantly fell for her, not sure as to why. Their relationship was a brief one though.

A trip down memory lane, ah... good times. She looked at Kat with a happy sigh.

Any normal person probably would have taken one look at Kat and turned away. Any man interested in picking up a woman probably would have looked away as well. She didn't mind the arm that even a Spartan might not give a look to, as to them it was a sign of her recklessness. For her though, it was as much a part of Kat as her once real arm had been. Six loved everything else about Kat as well though. She was a bitch at times, but that was part of Kat's rather feisty personality that she liked. She had a lovely body, nice curves, nice bum. Sexy accent, oh the Slavic accent was a varied and beautiful one. Six had asked where Kat was from, and Kat had said that she couldn't recall, but it was from a planet that had been colonised by a lot of Slavs: Russian, Ukrainian, Polish, and such.

She was lost in her thoughts again as Kat opened her eyes.

"Mh, morning Faith. You make a habit of watching me sleep?"

"All the time." Came Six's witty reply.

"Uh-huh." Kat mumbled into her metal arm. She groaned and sighed. "What's the time?"

"Around 5-ish."

"...I'm going back to sleep." Kat said, defiant. This didn't work for her schedule. It was hardwired into her as a child to rise early and be a light sleeper. Sucks for a civvie life, indeed. "Join me, please."

"I will do." Six assured, and placed her arms around Kat, pulling her close and pushing their lips together for a moment before going back to the solace and escape of their dreams

* * *

"I still can't work this thing..." Kat cursed at the microwave.

Six just laughed and punched in a few numbers for her, then turning a dial, and another button. It whirred to life.

"Thank-you." Kat smiled and growled. "Here I am, mega tech savvy, and I can't work a microwave."

"You'll get used it." Six said while grabbing a canned soft drink from the fridge, closing it shut and facing Kat, she asked, "So, anything in-particular you plan on doing today? Other than work out and sleep?"

"Hey, that's been working for me so far." Kat said, not taking her eyes off the timer of the microwave. "I'm not too fond of going out. We've only just got here, really. And I don't want to go out and draw attention to myself."

"Well I would go with you."

"I wouldn't mind that, but we would still draw a lot of attention."

"That's because we're great."

"Yeah, there's that, but also; a lot of stares. Not what I like when I go out." Kat sighed, not joking. "Got enough of that from the marines."

"Well, we could go somewhere quiet."

"Ha, I can imagine that." Kat smiled. "But could that work? We got here with people staring at us, we weren't wearing our armour either."

"It'll die down. Believe me, we'll be just two other nobodies if we make regular appearances."

"When has that ever been true?"

"..."

"Hm?" Kat poked.

"...Okay." Faith sighed. "But still. We need to do _something_." She stressed. "Something other than sitting around and watching the TV?"

"Yeah, okay, okay." Kat notioned her off, and uncrossed her arms as the microwave finally beeped. "We can go out later if you want."

"That'd be nice."

"Settled. We going casual or smart casual?" Kat asked as she opened the microwave door to retrieve her meal. Upon grabbing and pulling it out, she exclaimed in anger. "Ah, shit! Hothot!" And abruptly dropped her food on the floor.

"Yeah, there's a little message on the side of the box that says: 'Warning: Food will be hot.' You know?" Six shook her head.

Kat glared, "I always wear my armour, I could handle plasma with my suit."

"You'll get used to it." Faith said again.

"Anyway, my food is dead. And I can't be asked to get more out the freezer." Kat said, grabbing the open box of microwaved chicken, of which most was on the floor, and popped a bit that had remained in the box, in her mouth.

"Want to go out to eat?" Faith suggested.

Kat didn't want to, really. But it'd me Faith happy. Kat put on a fake enthusiastic smile and chucked the spoiled food in the bin. "Yeah, alright. Let me grab some decent clothing."

* * *

**A/N: Another short chapter, but just laying the foundations for things.**

**Hope you're all not too annoyed at the change.**

**Next chapter up soon. Much love.**

**~Jessi**


	3. Euphoria

**Procrastination and that bloody writers block is a bitch.**

**~Shoos the writers block away~**

**New chapter! Apologies for all delays and other such assorted & exhausted excuses.**

* * *

It was dark across the sky as the moonlight streaked down around the endless skyscrapers that past the clouds, re-fractions of light from the neon in the air made the supercity glow as if it were the embodiment of crystal itself. Faith was quite happily pacing along with Kat, their hands intertwined. As Faith's boots hit the hard, smoothed ground in thuds, she could only make out Kat's distinguishable... _fear_? Six wasn't paying mind to the few people that were going about their business around them, it was different for Kat, however. This amazing, scarred woman next to her, who had outlived Covenant hordes and aliens of extreme proportion, looked as if she was afraid of the opinions of normal humans. Well, maybe it wasn't fear, but obvious hesitation on her part: Her footsteps were slow and cautious, like a caged animal that hadn't been let out in too long, that becomes untrusting. Kat's eyes were darting around as well, and her stance was almost rigid. Six couldn't help but laugh a little.

She turned her head and placed her lips on Kats soft cheek, which made her stop and go even more rigid as they were in public. They got one or two looks, but they weren't unkind; simply curious. After all, they were very tall for women, even taller than most men, and very toned. As well as one of them possessing a bionic arm. Faith grinned and held Kat close, and after a few seconds, she was less tensed. She sighed and they continued walking to their destination.

"Look, Faith, I appreciate what you're trying to do." Kat almost whispered. "But this won't go away, not instantly."

"I know." Faith nodded. Tightening her grip on Kats hand with a gentle squeeze. "But I can help it along."

"I doubt it. But I thank-you for trying."

"More than alright."

"How about there for a bite to eat?" Faith motioned toward a small Chinese restaurant a bit down the road from where they were. They could see it was lit very brightly among all the other splendid colours and lights the surrounding area massed, and it stood out with saturated and rustic oranges and golds: Very reminiscent of old Hong Kong. There was an old lady out the front next to a flashy sign handing out what appeared to be samples; maybe a new food they were getting in the restaurant?

"Yeah, I could go for some Chinese." Kat agreed, taking steps toward the establishment with personal interest. Faith smiled that Kat was genuinely trying to be happy and be on a nice outing with her. She could still see some amount of apprehension in Kats walk, but it was smooth enough to not be seen as hesitation by everyday people. It was almost silent in the street when they came up to the front, save for the voices inside, which sounded cheery and welcoming. Kat even took one of the samples; which appeared to be a meat in batter. She commented as they entered that it tasted like beef spiced with herbs and garlic, even though it was apparently not beef. That was odd. The rich atmosphere hit them like a wave; the happy smiles from families and workers, the calls and orders being shouted in Chinese, the chatter, the aroma of freshly cooked food moving through the air. This place screamed welcome.

They moved further in and were greeted by a waitress with very concentrated eye-liner and long dark hair; she was gorgeous. Her English sounded broken, but they could gather what she said.

"Hello this even-ing." She greeted them. "You would like two seats?"

"Yes please." Faith nodded to her. She confirmed and soon they were seated quite snugly next to a window, which had a lovely view outside into a flower garden. Kat scooted up closer to Faith and rested herself on the Jap's shoulder; she was feeling slightly tired it seemed.

"That medication is still taking a punch out of me." Kat snorted with annoyance, sheepishly poking her own hand as if to test her level of alert. "Reckon you can keep me awake?" She mused with a Cheshire smile.

"Well the waitress is coming already, so you'd probably want to order something before she goes away." Faith motioned to the woman walking up to them, glancing her eyes downward to the slightly prone person using her as a support. "Plus, I'll eat my food while you watch."

"Cruel." Kat mumbled. Then forced herself to sit upright and open her eyes through sheer will.

"You know that it's not recommended that you mix alcohol and meds?" She pointed out matter-of-factly as her finger traced down the drinks section of the Menu Six held in her hand. "Well we have a higher tolerance. And it would help with us getting to sleep that little bit extra."

"It's not a good idea." Faith chided, then scoffed very quietly and admitted a form of defeat. "But I would like to sleep easier."

"It begs a question." Kat pondered.

"Which is?"

"Why don't we stock alcohol at ours?" She almost grinned, "Much easier than a single bottle of wine from a restaurant."

And to their speaking of ordering wine, the lady had just came up. It took Faith all of 5 seconds to order a bottle of red wine and both their accompanying meals and dessert. The waitress was off before Kat could blink.

"That was good service. And yes, we'll need to. Definitely head somewhere after this?" She smiled slightly with a wondering look.

"Hm, I guess so. If it'll make you happy." Six nodded her head sincerely.

"Awesome. Night planned."

* * *

"Here." Kat pointed. "Just down here. Spotted it the other day when you forced me out the apartment for some fresh air."

It was a shabby and somewhat bare-bones looking place, odd for a structure in the fairly new supercity, but Six wouldn't question Kat's judgment. She examined the fading shine of the outer walls and noted the eye-watering, flashing neon signs all around the area. They proclaimed the name of the club. It was bold, eye-invading, yet beautiful in its own hectic way.

_Euphoria._

Quite a basic name, as well as overall the place looking dull, but even so, Six could see the line that was outside the club. Many of these people were what the news would describe as delinquents and social outcasts. Their attire certainly didn't help that contrast. One woman looked as if she'd crawled out of a cyberpunk sci-fi flick; she wore skimpy leather garments with neon blue trim, and some very large boots. Even her hair was bright pink and over the top, it seemed to spike in every possible direction.

Kat eagerly dragged Six by her hand until they stood at the back of the line. They drew many looks. Six laughed inwardly to herself about that one, considering the way this lot were dressed. The line was slow at first, eventually picking up its speed until they stood before the bouncer. He warily eyed them but made no comment, examining them. Kat smiled a little, she knew how this worked: If the bouncer didn't like the look of you, you weren't getting in, simple as. And if you were a guy all by his lonesome, then you'd be turned away. If you were a guy with several women, in you went. And if you were a group of women, in you went. However, Kat wasn't too sure about his opinion on themselves.

It seemed as if she might have to bribe the bastard, as was the case for those that really wanted in for their night of fun, but he nodded gently, moving his form to unblock the way into the pulsing club.

"Don't cause any trouble." He warned, eyes piercing that bionic arm of Kat's, and both their numerous scars. They nodded, moving in, before he stopped them again with his arm. "You... you're war vets right?" His expression had taken on a look of admiration.

Kat now eyed the man skeptically. "Yes. Covvie war. What of it?"

"Well then. Go right on in, sorry I stopped you both."

* * *

The club was brazen with energy, and they loved it. People dancing, drinking, even fighting before the security broke it up. Everything was fast and dirty. Women grinding against men or danced sensually. Both genders of dancer tranced and bounced on a large stage over the far end of the club.

And the _colours._

It was both disorientating and wonderful. The blue flashed, the green pulsed angrily, and the pink strobes buzzed through the air. All with the same speed and tenacity of the people present. Gripping Six's hand so as to not get lost in the fray, Kat made her way to the bar. She wanted drink.

"Two of the strongest spirit shots you got!" Kat screamed over the noise, slamming down her credit chip. The bartender looked at them and pushed it back. Kat gave a quizzical look before he smiled and filled up two large shot glasses with a precious, crystal clear green liquid.

"Drinks on the house for war veterans!" He explained, pushing them to where Kat stood. She nodded to him, making a point of picking up the glass with her prosthetic instead. She handed the other drink to Six, chinked the drinks, and they downed them without care.

This was going to be a long night.


End file.
